This issue of the DU Newsletter proudly brought to you by:Chevy Trucks

• 4 Time-Tested Tips for Hunting Dabblers

• Chapter Spotlight:
Garrison Wildlife Chapter

• 2010 Holiday Gear Guide

• Making Waves with Motion Decoys

• Landowner Spotlight:
Gary & Colby Marshall

...and more

There's an app for thatDU's official iPhone app is now available—get it today!

Whether you need directions to your next DU event, help identifying a duck or goose in the air, cooking tips, video tips to help improve your shot or science-based information on wetlands and waterfowl,Ducks Unlimited now has an app for that.

We've picked our favorite member photos of the day from November for our monthly slideshow. This month we celebrate the next generation of waterfowlers with some great photos of our members' kids and grandkids.

Each February, members of Minnesota's Garrison Wildlife DU chapter march out onto frozen Lake Mille Lacs in the early-morning darkness and drill 5,000 holes through two feet of solid ice. These dedicated DU volunteers need to get an early start because thousands of people will arrive in a few hours to claim these holes to fish for the lake's famous walleye.

If you expect the wind to change while you are hunting, try putting out three or four groups of decoys to cover any possible wind change and keep yourself from having to move decoys while the birds are flying.

–Scott Sommerlatte,Lake Jackson, Texas

Cast Your Vote!Former DU TV host among finalists for Budweiser Conservationist of the Year

Jared Brown of Clearwater, Fla., host of Ducks Unlimited Television from 2002 to 2009, has been named a finalist for the 2011 Budweiser Conservationist of the Year and he needs your vote!

Waterfowl are moving with the cold December winds, and hunters throughout the country are preparing for the winter flights. The DU E-newsletter editorial team has selected four of the most time-tested dabbler hunting tips for you to focus on this season. Remembering these four essentials can help you improve your calling, decoys, concealment and shooting.

Do you have waterfowl hunters on your shopping list this holiday season? The DU E-newsletter editorial team has pieced together a holiday wish list of gift ideas that will bring joy to waterfowlers young and old. If you see something you like, drop a subtle hint by forwarding the DU E-newsletter Holiday Gear Guide to your loved ones.

Andrew Raedeke, waterfowl biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, was straightforward in his assessment of current duck numbers in the Show-Me State: "If you're a duck hunter, you need to be hunting in Missouri this week."

Calm, bluebird days can be troublesome for the duck hunter. Decoys sit at attention, with no signs of life. This is hardly the picture a waterfowler wants to portray, as ducks are seldom motionless in the wild.

Since live decoys were outlawed in 1935, duck and goose hunters have devised numerous ways of creating lifelike movement in their spreads. Some, like the jerk cord, have worked wonders. Others have not. But modern technology has raised the bar considerably in terms of decoy motion. Here's a roundup of products now available for those who want to cause a commotion in their decoys.

Responding to the possible impacts of the Louisiana oil spill in June 2010, Ducks Unlimited, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the Natural Resources Conservation Service partnered up to put habitat on the ground for migrating waterfowl and shorebirds. In this video update, DU CEO Dale Hall explains the benefits of this partnership.

Ducks Unlimited is pleased with the announcement that Sen. Debbie Stabenow has been selected to become the next chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. The committee’s work is critical to the long-term conservation of wetlands and waterfowl habitat. Read more

Gary Marshall and his son, Colby, operate a family ranch in the Harney Basin of southern Oregon. During spring and early summer, they flood-irrigate their wet meadows via a series of sloughs, ditches and spreader dikes, providing vital feeding and resting habitat for pintails and other dabbling ducks as the birds migrate north in spring.

The Ducks Unlimited Insurance Program, provided by Lockton Risk Services, has made it easier to protect your valued firearms with their new online application. Within seconds you can calculate your premium for Firearm & Property Protection insurance with no obligation. Then complete some basic information and make your purchase with your credit card or by e-check. You'll receive your Notice of Insurance immediately via e-mail.

Mission: Ducks Unlimited conserves, restores and manages wetlands and associated habitats for North America's waterfowl. These habitats also benefit other wildlife and people. Our vision is wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever.